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GOLDANDBLACK EXPRESS • VOLUME 25, EXPRESS 17 • 25 BY STACY CLARDIE SClardie@GoldandBlack.com R yan Russell didn't get worn out during Saturday's East-West Shrine Game — he played only alternating series for the West defense. Still, it was worth the week-long trip to St. Petersburg, Fla., for the former Boilermaker. "It went well. It was a great experience," said Russell, whose team lost 19-3. "Coming from playing 70-plus snaps to going every other series was different. You don't get as many opportunities to impact as you would want, so every chance you get is special, precious. I didn't play a whole bunch, but definitely feel confident with what I did and what I was able to do all week." Statistics weren't publicly available, but Russell said he had a couple of assisted tackles and some QB pressures. On one of the latter, he nearly had a sack before the quarterback threw the ball and the pass got intercepted. It was more what Russell was able to show during the week's worth of prac - tices leading into the game that could have helped his stock. Days were spent in practic- es and meetings until about 7 p.m. when NFL scouts took over and held interviews. Sev- eral scouts had never seen Russell play, he said, so it was nice to showcase his skills to a wider audience. "I think I definitely was able to show a dif- ferent side of myself and my play," said Rus- sell, whose defensive line coach for the West was Andre Carter, a former NFL player and the son of his Purdue D-line coach Rubin Carter. "One-on-ones were definitely big. That was by far my best part of my practice, one-on-one pass rush, D-line (vs.) O-line. I think that's where I started to turn some heads and (also by) hus- tling to the ball and things of that nature. And the interviews, the interviews are big. "It can be a little overwhelming, kind of like camp meets a job interview. But it's good. The more teams that want to talk to you and get to know you, that's going to be better (going forward)." Russell is back in Atlanta now training for the NFL Combine in February. He didn't get an invite to the Senior Bowl, which he was hoping for. But it'll give him more time to train for the big day in Indianapolis. He said he isn't targeting any certain area in training — "there's not red flags for me right now when it comes to drills" for the Combine — and he's just hoping to get big - ger, stronger and faster. "There's still a load of opportunities that I'm definitely looking forward to," he said. Russell Revels In 'Experience' F O OT BA L L : N E W S A N D N OT E S Tom Campbell Ryan Russell enjoyed his experience in the East-West Shrine game in St. Petersburg, Fla., last weekend, even if he only alternated series for the West team.